Blog

A collection of 115 posts

Blog

Book Review: Nona the Ninth

Nona's terminally optimistic perspective was so over the top that it became funny and never a drag to read.

Blog

Book Review: Harrow the Ninth

I won't mince words: Harrow the Ninth was a slog. The only reason I didn't rage quit 10 chapters in was because a good friend had prepped me that Muir had attempted something that was clever but ultimately "just didn't work." Unlike

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Enigma Cover Reveal

I'm happy to share José del Nido's latest masterpiece in the sparkly new cover for Enigma! José captured the protagonist Britta Silverstar perfectly: her slight figure, the ’ware on her left arm, her jeweled hair pin, and her bedraggled business outfit after a harrowing trek through

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Book Review: Sweep of the Heart

Sweep of the Heart is a worthy addition to the Innkeeper Chronicles. Andrews continue to up the scope and stakes while keeping the story's heart around a girl and her magical inn.

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World Building

Different approaches to building your world and bringing it to life without overwhelming your reader.

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Crossover Character Interview: Charon

Zima and Cappa from The Z-Tech Chronicles interview Charon from Dragon Assassin Like most interviews, this one went in a completely different direction than I imagined. I'm only glad the two assassins didn't end up killing each other, although they might have if Cappa hadn'

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Lost Colonies Compendium

A companion guide for the Lost Colonies science fantasy space opera series that will grow as the story expands. Includes a galaxy map, timeline, colony information, and additional reading.

Blog

2023 in review, 2024... 3... 2... 1... blastoff!

Didn't quite hit my goals for the year, but 2024 looks to be packed. Thoughts on retirement, switching genres to sci fi, marketing experiments, and the year ahead.

Blog

December 99¢ sale

All titles on sale for $0.99 (USD) through Dec 31, 2023.

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Project Xerxes - Writing Wonders Aug 2023

Writing Wonders centered on Project Xerxes. Learn about Emra, Niz, planet Galileo, my philosophy on killing characters, and more.

Blog

Project Xerxes Cover Reveal

Cover reveal for Project Xerxes. A bit about the story and why the cover fits.

Blog

Book Review: Wool

A post-apocalyptic exploration of humanity in an extended pressure cooker. While I disagreed with some of the premise and struggled with a few mechanics, I enjoyed Wool enough to recommend it.

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Effective Small Caps in Scrivener 3

Small caps are commonly seen in both printed and electronic books to represent signs or other messages that italics or quotes don’t quite cover, so there must be an easy, supported way to set them up in Scrivener so they export properly to PDF, ePub, and mobi formats. Right?

Blog

Book Review: Red Rising

Red Rising has been recommended to me by everyone, everywhere (all at once) for so long that I must be the last sci fi lover on the planet to have read it. But in case I'm not, here's a review to convince you why you should drop everything and read it right now.

Blog

Timeless Keeper - Writing Wonders July 2023

Thought-provoking Q&A about the Timeless Keeper Saga and writing in general.

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Holtondome sold out at BayCon 2023

Yeah, those two stacks of paperbacks on the left side of the table? Those were Holtondome and New Denver, and they were gone by the end of Day 3! Fortunately I had 2 more paperbacks of New Denver in stock, but I ended up selling a few Holtondome hardcovers for

Blog

Book Review: Gideon the Ninth

Gideon was so good that it threw me into a book coma and has made me question my skills as an author, and I mean those in the best possible ways.

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Z-Tech Chronicles - Writing Wonders June 2023

My collected answers for Writing Wonders, June 2023, which in honor of Pride Month focuses on The Z-Tech Chronicles.

Newsletter

New Denver - Cover Reveal

Cover reveal for New Denver (Timeless Keeper Saga Book 2) coming this August! A few words on the inspiration behind the artwork.

Blog

Enigma - Writing Wonders May 2023

My collected answers for Writing Wonders, May 2023, which focuses on Enigma (Lost Colonies Book 1), releasing later this year.

Book Review

Book Review: Rhythm of War

An amazing sequel that took me 2+ years to finish because it has all the excitement—and the long buildup—of 4 books combined.

Blog

Book Review: The Red Scholar's Wake

­­­­The Red Scholar’s Wake ticks many boxes on my science fiction checklist: artificial lifeforms (can’t call them “AI”s these days) with human-like emotions; focus on relationships, complicated by extra-human concerns; realistic romance that complements the plot, instead of overshadowing it; great world building; a well-thought-out, imperfect, futuristic

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Book Review: Legends & Lattes

What an amazing fantasy tale! At its heart, Legends & Lattes is a “retired adventurer” trope in a fantasy setting with a twist of steam punk, yet those descriptions alone don’t do the story justice. The protagonist, Viv, is endearing, as are her partners in crime, especially Tandri. The

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Book Review: Magus

Chalut really delivers with this last book of the Unwoven Tapestry fantasy series, wrapping up Donovan and Ruben's epic struggles in a memorable finale that kept me turning pages into the night. Magus expands on the unique magic system outlaid in the previous books, answering every question I

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Science Fiction Books That Broke the Mold

Shepherd.com just posted my list! This list contains some of the science fiction titles that inspired me to push genre boundaries and explore new territory with every series and book I publish. Each entry also has a brief summary of why I believe it belongs on the list. Shepherd